elston



J'. A. ELSTON. AERIAL MAOHINE.

No. 67,739. Patented .Aiig. '13, 1867.

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gotten totes g ll J. A. ELSTON, I or ELsToN STAT-I0 1v; MISSOURI. ILetters Patent No. 67,739, dated August 13, I867. v

IMPROVED AERIAL MACHINE.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that 1,3. A. ELSTOX, of Elston Station, in the county ofCole, and State of Missouri. havt invented a new and improved AerialMachine; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,andexa'ct description thereof, which will enable others skilled in theartto makc and use the same,-reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming part of this specification, in which----.

Figure 1 is a perspective View of my improved machine.

. Figure 2 is a top view of the same partly in section through the linea: 2:, fig. '1.

Similarxletters'of reference indicate like parts.

i invention has for its objectvto furnish an improved machine fornavigating the air, so constructed and arranged as to be completelyunder the control of the navigator; audit consistsinthe combination ofone or more; pairs-oi wings and the rods, slide, and lover, by means ofwhich they are operated, with the frame of the machine, and-in thecombination of the eye-block and ropes wi h the how'and stern of the carfor the purposeof adjusting the position of the car with respect to thesupportingballoon; the whole being constructed and arranged ashereinafter more fully described. v

A is the car, which I prefer to make boat-shaped, '56 as to encounterless resistancein moving through the air, and so as to'be more under thecontrol of the rudder. B is a. central post securely attached to thefame of the car, and which is slotted vertically, with two slots crossingeach other at right angles, as shown in figs. 1 and 2. To the upper endof the post are hinged orpivo't-ed the-pair orpairs of wings C. Thewings C should be made somewhat concave, so that they may encounter lessresistance in rising than in descending. Each 4 wing n ay bea-continuous platc, or it may be a 'framework covcred'with suitablematerial, and all the wings upon the same side should beconncctedtogether at or near their bases, so that they may move together. .To theunder sideofthe wings, near thcir buses, are attached arms D projectingdownward, to the lower ends ofwhich are pivoted the upper ends of theconnecting-r ods'E, the lower ends of which are pivoted to the block F Ithat slides upjand down in the slots of the post B, as shdwn in fig. 1.To the under side of the sliding-block F is pivoted the upper end of theconnecting-rod G, the lower end of which is pivoted to the lever H, sothat by, leaving the lever II up and down a movement is given to theWings 0 similar to that ofa birds wings in flying. The lever H passesthrough the slot in the post 13, and is pivoted to a. support, I,:ittached to the frame ofthe car It. The ends h and it of the lever Hextend beyond the post B and support I, so that it maybe operated by aman at each end. The forward end h of the lever H is curved, as shown infig. 2, so that both ,the menthat are operating the said lever may lookforward; The car is designed to be attached'to a balloon of such buoyantpower as nearly to support the car and its contents; that is to say, ofsuch power that the additional power developed by operating the wings Cwill easily cause the-machine to rise. The car should be so eonnectcd tothe balloon that'its forward end may be raised above or lowered beneaththe level of its rear end. J is an eye-block, by means of which the caris susp'ended from the balloon. 'Kis a rope, the upper end of which issecured I) the eye-block J and its lower end to the stern-post of thecar- Lis a. rope, one end of which is secured to the upper end of thepost 13; it then passes over a pulley in the eye-block J, and thencedown to the forward end of'the car over pulleys at'the upper andlower-parts of the post M, and has an eye or loop, N, attached to itsend, by which it may be attached to one or the other of the teeth orhooks formed upon or attached to the rear side of said post, so that;the forward end of the car may be raised or lowered, as desired. 0 isthe rudder, which is pivoted to the stern-post P of the car, as shown inthe drawings. R are ropes attached to the sides of the rudder O, whichpass through eyes-in the endsof the arms S attached to the stern-post P,through eyes in the ends of the arms T attached to the post 13, and areattached to the steer-wheel U pivoted to the support I, as shown infig. 1. By this arrangement of the steering apparatus the rudder O canhe opereted from either end of the car, as may be convenient. V

In using the machine, when I wish to rise into the air I adjust the carso as to be upon a level, and work myself to the desired heighthy usingthe wings. I then take the desired direction, and begin to descend bylowering the forward end of the car and. move down a long inclinedplane, descending either by gravity or by working the wings C, the forceof which will now'be backward and downward. Upon approaching the earth,'1 wish to alight, I raise the forward end of the car above the levelof'the rear end. The force of the wings I i 67,739 I :IJ: I w 2 v I, IV, will fifiwlbe downwind-z and-forwerd, breaking the force of themomentum and aliglatixig easily. But if I wish to ascend again]: placethe bar upon a level and work up to the desired height; with the wings;While being propelled-either bygravitaiion orby the wings the redder Oeimliles-me to direct my e'ourse as may be desired,

which would not be possible if the machine fioatedwith the wind.

Having thus described my ini'entidn', what I claim as new, and desire tosec'ure by Letters Patent, is'-' 1. The combination of ene or more pairsof wings C, connecting-rods E, sliding block F, connecting-rod G, andleirer H, with each ether, and with the post B ar d frame of the car,sebstantially as herein shown and describednendfor tile purgosfii jfiOILli. v w l 2. The combination of the eye-block J andropesK and'Lwith the post 13, and front and stern-posbs of the car, for thepurpose/bf changing the-level of said car, substantially as herein shownand described.

; e v .'.T,A ..ELSTON.

Witnesses:

- SAMUEL I. Vance,

